Cricket Scotland has announced the list of men's and women's players who will be awarded a professional contract for 2023-24. Fourteen men's players have been selected while nine women's cricketers make the list, marking the first time that women's cricketers in Scotland have been awarded a professional contract since the announcement in November 2022.
The contracts will be valid from April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024, and the selection of players was made by a panel through a process conducted in February and March of this year. The match fees for men and women cricketers will continue to be equal, following the practice that has been in place since 2021.
Toby Bailey, Cricket Scotland's Interim Head of Performance on the contracts, expressed his delight on the landmark moment for women's cricket in Scotland. "Given the rapid growth of women's cricket across the world, promotion and investment in the women's game in Scotland is now a cornerstone of the strategy for the organisation, and today's news is a big step on the road to ensuring that cricket in Scotland is fair and inclusive for all," he added.
Men's contracts: Richie Berrington, Matthew Cross, Ally Evans, Chris Greaves, Jack Jarvis, Michael Leask, Chris McBride, Brandon McMullen, George Munsey, Liam Naylor, Safyaan Sharif, Chris Sole, Hamza Tahir, Mark Watt.
Women's contracts: Abbi Aitken-Drummond, Priyanaz Chatterji, Katherine Fraser, Lorna Jack, Ailsa Lister, Megan McColl, Orla Montgomery, Hannah Rainey, Ellen Watson.